Renmark’s Riverland Dinghy Derby is wild, waterbourne version of rally racing

On the slow-moving Murray River, just two hundred miles up the road from Adelaide in South Australia, is the town of Renmark — home of the Red Bull Dinghy Derby. Once a year, teams of two helmeted mates board tinnies outfitted with an outboard motor and race at speeds up to 90 km/h over a 100 kilometer course in pursuit of bragging rights and a cheap plastic trophy.

The course unfolds over four serpentine laps on the river; two short ones and two long ones. The “navi” crouches in the boat’s prow directing it past other competitors, sand bars and fallen timber, whilst the driver mans the motor.

Next year’s Riverland Dinghy Derby is scheduled for Saturday, February 6th in Renmark.

If you want to catch the action in person, you’ll want to book a room in advance. The wild-and-woolly boat race has been attracting bigger and bigger crowds to the normally sleepy town of 8,000.

For $140 a night you can actually stay on the river itself in a paddlewheel houseboat listed on Airbnb.

Aside from the comfy interior, the permanently-docked houseboat comes with a couple of kayaks to take out on the water.